Undeterred by the 60,000 striking junior college teachers who have refused to check Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) papers, the state board has decided to ask retired teachers to evaluate answersheets.
Desperate to announce the HSC results on time, the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) has taken a decision to ask retired teachers to check the papers. All divisional boards have been asked to collect district-wise applications from such teachers through advertisements.

Laxmikant Pandey, board chairperson, Mumbai division said the selection criteria will be tough. “We will check the teachers’ area of expertise, ensure that they will be able to accurately check the answersheets, and only then shortlist their names,” he said.

Currently, not a single answersheet has been corrected because of the boycott.

A majority of answersheets are still in the custody of college principals as examiners have refused to correct them.

If paper checking does not begin soon, it could affect over three lakh students, who would miss the deadlines to apply to higher education courses.

Experts feel that not many teachers will volunteer for this task, primarily because the remuneration offered is paltry.

Rajesh Pandya, secretary, Teachers Democratic Front said, “The board pays a pittance to examiners and moderators for checking answersheets. Despite our repeated complaints, they have not increased the remuneration.”